Cities of the Forgotten

by Rayne W Grath

  Aarik, occupied with turning off the medallion and hopefully the mojo stuff he did to the cameras, began the chant becoming familiar to her ears. Kiya exited the craft and made herself as comfortable as could be on the metal walkway while she busied herself with her laptop. Even though Aarik had indicated he wouldn’t need her help to activate the medallion, the challenge of duplicating the chant he used to power it, was the only thing keeping her sane over the past few days of waiting.

  Her dreams were filled with prophetic warnings she could never completely recall while awake which, as of late, happened more often than not. This left coffee as the only thing between her and jail several times. She leaned over grabbed her coffee mug, took a big swig and sighed happily when it slid down her throat, still warm and inviting. She was thankful she had already swallowed, when Ailla rounded the corner, with Anna and Taylor not far behind, and said, “Thank goodness. After the deep sigh we heard coming off the elevator, I was afraid we might be interrupting something.”

  “Just my next fix,” answered Kiya on a yawn, closing her laptop she looked over at Aarik for backup.

  “What brings you down to our neck of the woods this morning, Ailla?” Aarik asked, looking up from his notebook without a care in the world.

  “Came to check in on my surveillance system, I detected an anomaly and wanted to see what was wrong with it,” answered Ailla. Her eyes swept the room for anything out of the ordinary before they bounced between Kiya and Aarik suspiciously.

  “I don’t know much about your software program, but maybe you experienced a glitch. They seem to be working just fine. I mean I think the green light means they are recording, but I could be wrong,” Kiya said with as much innocence as she could spin in her voice.

  “That is what the green lights mean, Kiya. Seems probable there could have been a reboot or something to explain the disruption. Maybe you should run a complete diagnostic evaluation when you return to your office, Ailla?” Anna said with concern in her voice, as she squeezed Ailla’s shoulder consolingly.

  “Perhaps you are right, Dr. Rais,” Ailla replied thoughtfully, before she turned on her heel and walked out.

  “Thanks, Anna,” Kiya said before Anna cut her off.

  “Nothing to thank me for. Just doing my job. Did I ever show you the break room located on this floor?”

  Kiya was just about ready to remind her they had seen it the day before when Anna mouthed the words trust me. “No. Does it have a coffee maker?” Kiya said, hoping her tone was believable and not too fake. Her Grams always said she was a terrible actor and couldn’t lie to save her teeth, whatever that meant.

  “Yes, it has a small kitchenette with a fridge, microwave, and coffee maker. Not to mention the bathrooms,” answered Anna, emphasizing the last sentence in a sing song voice as she led Kiya towards the break room she had showed her the day before.

  “Perfect! I could use a bathroom break actually, with all that coffee. You guys need anything?” asked Kiya over her shoulder.

  “If they have any snacks bring some back with you,” Aarik called out after her.

  “He’s ruled by his stomach. It’s a good thing I know how to cook,” said Kiya, trying to make conversation as they passed thru the small kitchen to the bathroom stalls.

  Once the door was shut Kiya opened her mouth to ask what was up when Anna placed her hand over Kiya’s mouth and shook her head. Holding up her other hand she indicated to stay quiet while she pulled out a small notebook from her lab coat and removed her hand from Kiya’s mouth. She pointed to the stall and said, “Make sure you check the stall for TP.” while she walked over to the sink turned on the water, and scribbled out a message.

  Kiya rushed through the ritual of relieving herself and exited the stall to wash her hands. Anna held up her note while Kiya finished rinsing her hands and it said, “No camera in here, but they can hear us. Ailla suspects something is amiss and fetched me to babysit you guys while she investigates. I have no obligation to them, but would really appreciate it if I didn’t have to lie. I tend to exaggerate made up stories and end up exposing myself in the end. Not very pretty.”

  Kiya smiled and nodded her head before she said, “Let’s see what we can find for Aarik and Taylor to munch on. We’ll get another three hours out of them if they are properly fueled. Well, at least that’s true of Aarik.”

  “Aren’t all men that way?” replied Anna, as she held the door open for Kiya like Vanna White.

  “Most anyway,” answered Kiya, while she rummaged through the cupboards, only stopping when she eyed a large package of black pepper beef jerky. She pulled it out and announced, “Yum. These are my favorite. Hope the boys don’t mind pepper.”

  “They have two feet, if they don’t like it they can get something for themselves,” Anna replied and headed back towards the men.

  The guys were huddled around the podium discussing something quietly when Kiya and Anna rounded the corner. Aarik looked up and scanned Kiya’s hands before he grinned with approval and met her eyes again. “Precisely what I was craving. Which one of you is the mind reader?” said Aarik teasingly.

  “Guilty,” admitted Kiya with a smirk, tossing him the bag playfully. She walked up next to Taylor, placed her hand on the podium and asked, “Make anything out of it?”

  “Nothing yet it’s still a mystery. It’s made of the same metal as the bottom part of the craft, but it’s not as cold, interestingly enough. Maybe a different alloy of the metal? Would need to send it to the lab for analysis,” Taylor replied, scratching his head in reflection and then added, “I could have sworn the night Diego and Th’ael escaped the podium was glowing before they blinked out.”

  “Now that you mention it. I think you’re right,” Aarik said around a mouthful, before he swallowed and added, “I was focused mostly on preventing Kiya from giving herself up to Th’ael, but when we first approached them he was removing his hand from the podium and it was glowing.” Aarik nodded his head well after his statement like he was validating his own words, before he reached into the jerky bag and grabbed another handful like it was popcorn and he was about to watch a good drama unfold.

  “What do you mean, Kiya was giving herself to Th’ael. I thought you two had a thing?” asked Anna with a frown, putting her hands on her hips for emphasis.

  “Mind-control voodoo stuff. Wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy,” Kiya said with a shudder before she shook her arms out and said, “Enough about the bad guy. Aarik just needs to cloud up and turn it on.”

  Anna looked over at Kiya with a dismayed look before she shook her head and said, “Um...Kiya, honey. I’m all for someone wanting to reach their artistic or creative side, but there is a strict drug free policy around here and vaping would not be tolerated by any means.”

  “Vaping? What! No I said clouding! I might be from Washington and all, but that’s not what I was referring to. I mean, to each their own, but I was talking about how Aarik reaches his inner soul to gain knowledge. Like stuff stored in the cloud,” exclaimed Kiya in exasperation, turning to Anna in disbelief.

  “Sorry. Thought it was a new street name for it,” Anna said on a giggle, before she sobered and said, “Sounds similar to Plato’s belief, ‘Thinking - the talking of the soul with itself’.”

  “Exactly!” Aarik agreed before he said, “Never really took much stock in his point of view until lately.”

  “Wow. That’s incredible, although I’d be more apt to call it something other than the cloud. Too cliché if you ask me,” replied Anna, rubbing her chin in a thoughtful gesture before adding, “I’d call it the Astral Zone of Knowledge or the AZOK for short.”

  “Oohh, I like it. The AZOK has a nice ring to it,” added Kiya smiling over at Aarik, looking for his approval.

  “Yes it does,” Aarik said with a smile, nodding his head at Anna in acknowledgement.

  “So it’ll work?” Anna asked with a curious look.

  “I hope so, but won’t know till we try, is what I like to say,�
�� answered Taylor, as he clapped Aarik on the shoulder and walked over to Kiya and Anna to give him room.

  “We...How do you propose this is a ‘we’ thing?” teased Aarik with a smile, dropping the bag of jerky next to Kiya’s bag.

  “You have a point, but I’m sure you’ll need me for something later. I could…” responded Taylor defensively.

  “Were there any markings in the metal when it was powered up?” asked Anna interrupting Taylor’s possible tirade and redirecting the conversation.

  “Yes. I don’t remember what they looked like if that’s what you’re asking, but two symbols appeared in the metal on either side of his hand print,” Aarik replied walking up to the front of the podium he placed both hands on either side of the flat metal screen and sighed. He pulled his right hand up and stared at it like it wasn’t an extension of his being before he placed it flat on the podium and said with a smile, “Beam me up, oh mighty AZOK.”

  Kiya looked around at the others and wanted to laugh when they appeared to be holding their breath while Aarik entered a world they were not a part of. She had complete faith Aarik would crack the podium problem by the end of the day and only worried about what they would do next time she encountered Th’ael and Diego.

  She needed to start thinking about taking a self-defense class and snorted when she realized she would need to put in a request to leave the facility. Deathly glares from Taylor and Anna for interrupting the silence they believed Aarik required to perform his mojo almost had her laughing out right. Kiya was about to mouth the word “Sorry” when Aarik shouted, “Hot damn, I’m good!” and everyone’s attention was redirected to the glowing podium around Aarik’s hand.

  Taylor and Anna rushed forward crowding the podium, practically pushing Aarik aside before Taylor said, “If you move your hand, will it turn off right away?”

  “No, it’s on until someone teleports out of here, I think,” replied Aarik, as he stepped out of their way slowly.

  “Let’s give it a try,” exclaimed Kiya excitedly.

  “I’m game if you are but, full disclosure, I have no idea where we will end up. Still game?” Aarik replied as he looked back at the craft with veneration.

  “Maybe we should bring a weapon or something?” Kiya asked hesitantly.

  “Ouch! Did you forget so soon what I pulled off in the face of danger last time?” Aarik joked and feigned a pained heart.

  “Not like I could easily forget that moment in my life, but might I remind you we had a gun last time too,” retorted Kiya, just stopping herself from reminding him they were not exactly successful last time when they lost Luke at the hands of the sinister Diego.

  “True, but we don’t really have time to find one right now. I promise to secure something more to your liking for our next jump,” implored Aarik, with a look of longing on his face.

  Kiya could tell he was ready to leave without her if she stalled a moment more so she caved and said, “Jump. I like the term. Alright, but first sign of danger and we jump back.”

  “Thanks, but I can’t take credit for it. Taylor transcribed the medallion and according to him it says Terra Jump so it only seemed natural that we call it jump and not teleport,” explained Aarik as he stood next to the craft and waited to help her in.

  Kiya stepped forward and accepted his outstretched hand and before she stepped down into the craft for another unknown journey. She lifted up on her toes and brushed her lips lightly against his to remind him what they had to live for. When his breath quickened she figured he got the message and proceeded forward without delay. While she waited for him to join her, Anna and Taylor paid them no attention as they discussed the glowing hieroglyphs on the podium in detail.

  Aarik already had his medallion out and powered up when he joined her in the craft. He glanced over at her with his charming smile and said, “I’m assuming you don’t want a long countdown right?”

  “Not sure what gave you that impression. I’m just along for the ride,” replied Kiya coyly.

  “Ha! That’ll be the day!” exclaimed Aarik with a devilish grin.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” drilled Kiya, as she turned in the seat to give him her full attention.

  “Simply put, since the day I met you, you demonstrated how much you like to be in control. I find it hard to believe you are just along for the ride. Honestly, I don’t think you are capable of it,” explained Aarik with a complete disregard for his health.

  “Whatever. I thought you weren’t going to stall this time!” remarked Kiya, slapping his knee. She groaned when she felt his leg muscles contract at her touch and barely resisted stroking higher when he interrupted her exploration by clearing his throat. She looked up at him sheepishly and loved the look of longing portrayed on his face, but when his eyes glanced up and back down it reminded her they were not alone.

  She pulled her hand away from him slowly, and felt the blush spread across her cheeks with the same speed. He chuckled softly, leaned over and whispered, “I didn’t realize you were such an exhibitionist.”

  “I’m not. I swear!” sputtered Kiya, covering her face in embarrassment.

  “I was just kidding,” answered Aarik with a laugh, before he placed the glowing medallion into the slot and frowned when nothing happened. He glowered at the glowing medallion and blurted, “Shit! It didn’t work. Why didn’t we jump?”

  “Because we moved it. The figure on the left side represents the place of origin and the one on the right is a destination. When we relocated the podium we broke the link,” Taylor piped up and when Anna smiled up at him adoringly he preened under her attention.

  “What’s the destination?” Kiya asked nervously, as she realized they had Th’ael’s last location.

  “Not sure. It doesn’t give a name, more like coordinates. We would need a map,” replied Taylor in concentration.

  “Map. That’s it. This morning before we had our little run or what not, I wanted to show you something and forgot after Ailla showed up. Move out of the way, Aarik,” exclaimed Kiya, as she lightly pushed at him impatiently.

  “I knew it! Man you guys are good! I completely believed you when you acted all innocent when we walked in on you earlier,” exclaimed Anna in a respectful tone.

  Kiya shook her head and decided to let Anna believe what she wanted as she scrambled out behind Aarik in a rush toward her things. “No offense, but I think you’re a bit deprived and should get out more,” Kiya added jokingly. She knelt down and opened her laptop in search of her thesis and the map it contained. She pulled it up, enlarged the image, and smiled before she turned it around for the others to see what she was talking about.

  “What are we looking at?” probed Aarik gently.

  “It’s a map of the Earth’s energy grid; where magnetic power flows along lines some people call ley lines. Come on. We’re in an underground facility beneath the Wardenclyffe Tower for God’s sake! Tesla built it here because we’re on one of the major intersecting nodes. A place of considerable power!” explained Kiya, enthusiastically flipping the computer back around to zoom out on the map. She looked up at Taylor and said, “What are the destination coordinates on the podium, Taylor?”

  “If I’m reading this correctly; 35° 30’ 8.01” latitude, -51° 20’ 47.56” longitude,” Taylor said uneasily.

  “What do you mean if?” Kiya probed as she brought up Google maps and entered the coordinates.

  “Nothing we’ve seen thus far has contained numbers Kiya. I’m speculating,” Taylor said in defense.

  “Darn. I wish you were right those coordinates lead to the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. I doubt we were lucky enough to have them drown to death,” admitted Kiya in defeat.

  Anna walked up behind Kiya and switched the viewing mode to satellite view and said, “Maybe. Maybe not. Plato did say the island of Atlantis was located in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.”

  “If you don’t mind me asking, Kiya, where is that location on your power grid map?” interjected Ta
ylor, with his finger on his temple.

  Kiya scanned the map and looked up at Taylor in gratitude. “It’s smack dab in the middle of a power node. Although I’m not sure I’d be willing to try jumping there. My luck we’d end up on the bottom of the ocean.” declared Kiya, disappointed.

  She laughed out loud as she traced the ley lines on her map and recalled her theory. When she peeked over the lid at Aarik and Taylor, their look of concern at her outburst prompted her to let them in on her thoughts, “Not sure why I didn’t think of this before, but the Seven Wonders of the World lie along the energy grid and in my thesis I proposed they were constructed using anti-gravitational forces. Why wouldn’t Th’ael’s people use the same free energy to build their cities? They did, I mean take the Washington site for example. It resides along the grid. It was one of reasons I took the job with Diego’s company in the first place.”

  “What were the other reasons?” asked Aarik, with a curious look on his face.

  “There were really only two. First, I wanted a chance to prove my theory and second I really needed a paying job. Why do you ask?” admitted Kiya shamelessly.

  “No reason. Curious is all,” Aarik answered quietly.

  “I think you’re trying to say we should input coordinates using the major nodes from your map, making sure we use the ones located over some kind of land mass, mind you, and keep trying until we get a match. Sort of like Russian Roulette,” stated Anna, as she pointed over Kiya’s shoulder at the intersecting lines on the screen with fascination.

  “Precisely. Aarik and I just proved it. We won’t go anywhere if there is a missing piece in the jump’s equation. Oh shit! That could only mean...wherever Th’ael jumped to had to have a receiving station on the other end, otherwise he wouldn’t have gone anywhere. I hope that means he’s dead, but with my luck he can probably breathe underwater or something of that nature,” exclaimed Kiya, bewildered.